ATLANTIC BEACH — The damage at Ocean Sands Condominiums was more than Mark Jones expected.

The property’s homeowner association president said Wednesday he knew the roof had come off the building Tuesday night during a storm that officials later confirmed spawned a tornado. But the extent of the damage remained unknown until the sun came up Wednesday.

Visible damage included the missing roof, which was now in the parking lot, and the loss of a front wall. Two of the property’s three buildings were condemned.

Jones said that he “was thankful to the good Lord” that there were very few people on the property at the time.

“If this was peak season we would have had upward of 500 people. There’s 108 units, and that’s a lot of people that could have been injured or killed,” he said. “Based on that we are very lucky. It could have been a lot worse. You can rebuild buildings, you can’t rebuild a human life.”

According to the National Weather service, the tornado spun up quickly just south of Bogue Banks in Carteret County and came ashore in western Atlantic Beach as an EF-2, damaging the Ocean Sands, as well as the Island Beach and Racquet Club condominiums.

The tornado downgraded to an EF-1 as it tracked across Bogue Banks along Hoop Pole Road, snapping trees and causing minor damage to several homes. The greatest damage was caused by fallen trees.

The tornado, still an EF-1, then passed across Bogue Sound and came ashore in Morehead City at Carteret Community College, passing by Carteret General Hospital.

Damage at the college included blown out windows and structural damage, while the hospital only saw minor damage, according to the NWS.

The funnel then continued north-northeast through residential areas of Mandy Farms, Country Club East and Crab Point causing extensive EF-1 damage to trees and homes, including loss of roofing materials, damage to siding and snapped trees.

The path was estimated to be 5.25 miles but could be slightly longer since it began as a waterspout over the Atlantic Ocean and continued into the Newport River before lifting, according to the NWS. The tornado was estimated to be 150 to 200 yards wide through the entire path.

Laura Pagano, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said winds reached 125 mph at Atlantic Beach and 95 to 110 mph in Morehead City.

Atlantic Beach Mayor Trace Cooper said Wednesday morning the storm swept across a “pretty narrow spot across the island,” hitting two complexes and one neighborhood.

Cooper said about a dozen people were evacuated Tuesday night.

“We are thankful that the DoubleTree took in those people last night,” he said, commenting on the undamaged hotel only a block down the road.

Cooper said two people were sent to the hospital Tuesday night but were released with non-life threatening injuries.

Carteret County Emergency officials were not immediately available for comment.

Joy Branham, chief executive officer for Onslow and Coastal Communities for the American Red Cross, said case workers are helping seven families with food, clothing and housing. Those still needing assistance due to the storms can call 252-637-3405. Branham said redcross.org has information about assistance and donations.

The post office in Atlantic Beach is aiding its sister site in Morehead City, which was damaged by the storm. Lisa Traxler, postmaster in Atlantic Beach, said she hoped the Morehead City location would be open Friday. Postal clients will be notified by the post office if their normal site is not available, Traxler said.

Duke Energy Progress crews were working Wednesday to get power back on to those affected by the storm. About 203 remained without electricity Wednesday afternoon, according to information from Duke Energy. That was down significantly from the nearly 6,000 customers who were without power around 11 p.m. Tuesday.

William Boyce Cheek, 58, lives about a block from Carteret Community College in Morehead City and said his family saw the tornado warning flash on the TV and immediately moved to a bathroom in the center of the house.

“I could hear a roar outside,” he said, noting it’s a sound he said he’s heard during two other tornados. “The lights started flashing and going on and off and then the power went off.”

Cheek said that the power was out until shortly after 1 a.m.

“Thank God that no one got hurt, at least not seriously,” he said.

Morehead City Manager David Whitlow said damage assessment teams were out from late Tuesday through Wednesday assessing the storm’s damage.

Whitlow said beyond damage to the Carteret Community College and Carteret General Hospital campuses, most of the destruction was on private property around Morehead City.

No deaths were reported, he said, adding that early estimates show downed trees or damaged structures at more than 60 different locations in the city.

He estimated the damage to exceed $1 million.

Carteret General Hospital spokeswoman Michelle Lee said early Wednesday the emergency department had some treatment bays down but remained open and operating. There were also trees down and debris around the hospital campus. Due to the power outage, the hospital was operating on emergency generator power Tuesday night and into Wednesday.

Across U.S. 70, Carteret Community College sustained extensive damage to its buildings, trees and vehicles, prompting a Wednesday closure. The college’s student center and Historic Camp Glenn Building were damaged, and the wind tore part of the roof off the building used for the college’s Basic Law Enforcement Training. The Crystal Coast Civic Center, which is on the same campus, had window damage.

College Public Information Officer Morgan Smith said the Bryant Building, which houses the student center, was not expected to reopen this academic year.